Method of transferring photogrpahic designs on ceramic ware



v Nov.28. 1939. w D FORD 2,181,452

METHOD OF TRANSFERRING PHOTOGRAPHIC DESIGNS 0N CERAMIC WARE Filed Oct. 16, 1936 I a 100 ghwcnm Patented Nov. 28, 1939 UNITED STATE amass METHOD OF TRANSFERRING rno'ro- GRAPHIC DESIGNS N CERAMIC WARE I Walter'D. Ford, Columbus, Ohio Application October 16, 1936, ScrialNo. 105.985

4 Claims.

My invention relates to an improved method adapted for employment in the transfer of decorative designs contained on a flat surface of the ceramic body to a curved or uneven surface of a second ceramic body, to the end of faithfully reproducing the said design on one or more of the curved or uneven surfaces of the second or succeeding bodies.

For a further and more detailed understanding of the invention, reference'is to be had to the following description and the accompanying drawing, wherein:

Fig. 1 is a plan view of a primary mold having a fiat surface bearing a design in relief;

Fig. 2-is a vertical sectional view taken through the primary mold;

Fig. 3 discloses the step of immersing the primary mold in a hot water bath;

Fig. 4 illustrates the operation of heating the primary mold to dry the flat relief bearing surface thereof and to prepare the same to receive a molten design-transferring material which at normal temperatures is flexible or pliable;

Fig. 5 discloses the operation of pouring the flexible transfer medium when in a heated or molten state onto the design bearing surface of the primary mold;

Fig. 6 illustrates the step of removing said flexible or pliable transfer'medium from the primary mold after the material comprising said medium has cooled or solidified to substantially a normal temperature;

Fig. '7 sets forth the step of placing the flexible transfer medium on an intermediate form with the int'aglio design in said medium arranged face down on said form;

Fig. 8 is a vertical sectional view'disclosing the operation of producing a secondary form in which the transfer medium is inlaid;

Fig; 9 is a similar view showing the complete secondary form with the transfer medium inlaid in. one of the surfaces thereof and disclosing the operation of pouring the final pattern mold;

Fig. 10 is a vertical sectional view through the completed pattern mold.

Referring'more particularly to the drawing, the numeral 5 designates a primary mold, preferably of plaster and produced by a casting, pressing or jiggering in accordance with any well known method of mold formation used in the ceramic industry. The mold in this instance is provided with a fiat upper surface 2 which bears thereon in relief, or intaglio, a photographically reproduced design 3. This design may constitute the photograph of an individual, object, drawing,

tapestry; fabric or any other design capable of being photographed. v

To produce such a design, as indicated-at 3, in the mold,-I preferably use the gelatin film process, such as is set forth in theprior patents of Luchter 710,106, Monteath 1,516,199, or as described in- Walls Dictionary of Photography (American Photographic Publishing Company) page '73. Briefly described, such a gelatin film process comprises the steps of effecting actinic printing through. a photographic negative or positive on a'surface of bichromated gelatin film, the film beingrcarried flatly upon a glass plate. The exposure ofthe gelatin film to the action of light through photographicnegative or positive results, after the'immersion 'of the filmin a water bath, in. theswelling of such portions of the film which have been least exposed to the action of light; Following the'formation of such a film, bearinga photographic image thereon in relief or intaglio, a mold, such as indicated at l, is formed-by pouring on aconfined surface of the film a moldable material-such as plaster of Paris beeswax or the'like. Thisresults in'the formation in the fiat surface of the mold a reproduction of the photograph to produce a relief or intaglio design thereof, as at 3, in the flat surface of said mold. In this instance, the design shown on the mold is in relief.

The particular feature of the present invention resides in the provision of steps by which the'designappearing on the fiat surface 2 of the primary mold may be transferred to a final mold having curved, rounded, undulating or uneven surfaces while faithfully preserving all of the characteristics of the design appearing on the primary mold. p

In attaining these ends, following the formation of the primary mold,-the latter is immersed in -a hot water bath, as indicated at 4 in Fig. 3, causing the plaster to absorb water while it is being heated by the temperature of the water. After the mold has remained in the hot water bath for a period of from five to thirty minutes, it is removed from the bath and the surface 2 thereof dried. The drying of the surface without depriving the pores of the plaster of their water content takes place without substantial loss of temperature in the heated state of the mold by the provision of. an incandescent lamp heater of the reflector type, as indicated at 5 in 'Fig. 4, or the equivalent thereof.

The immersion of the plaster mold in hot water and the subsequent. drying thereof while maintaining its temperature are steps which are in the form of a relatively thin layer on the upper design bearing surface 2 of the primary mold, immediately following removal of such mold from the influence of the heater, disclosed at 5.

Due to the heated and relatively dry surface of the mold, or the Wax receiving surface 2 thereof, the wax readily and closely distributes itself over the design bearing surface and conforms to the configuration of the latter, so that the design 3 will be faithfully and accurately reproduced in said matrix, even to the minutest detail thereof. When the wax cools, it assumes the form of a thin circular pliable disk, which may be readily separated from the primary mold, as shown in Fig. 6, with one surface of the disk bearing a reproduction of the design 3.

Following the removal of the wax matrix or disk from the primary mold, the latter is placed, as shown in Fig. '7, on a form I. In cross sectional formation, this form has the appearance or shape of the surface of the article on which the design is to be finally applied. In this instance, the form has the cross sectional formation of the interior of an ordinary table plate, or other type of fiat dish, although it will be understood that many other varying shapes or forms will be employed.

After its removal from the primary mold, the wax matrix is transferred to the curved upper surface of the form 1 and while warm is gently pressed face down upon the upper surface 8 of the form, with the design of the matrix contacting directly with the surface 8. The form 1 may be formed from clay, plaster or other moldable ceramic materials.

After the wax matrix has been positioned on the form to partake of the shape of the surface 8 thereof, the said form together with the matrix thereon is placed in a molding ring 9 and a plaster slip It is poured into this ring, as shown in Fig. 8, to surround the wax matrix and directly engage therewith. Prior to the pouring of the slip, the matrix may be lightly scored or grooved on the surface thereof opposite to the design so that the slip may enter the scoring. This is done so that when the slip or grog solidifies and hardens, an intermediate mold will be produced, indicated at H, having the Wax matrix inlaid in the surface thereof which partakes of the configuration of the form 1, the scoring permitting the wax matrix to be mechanically connected, as it were, with the material comprising the mold ll so that when the latter is separated from the form I, there will be little or no tendency on the part of the wax matrix to adhere to the upper surface of said form. When the intermediate mold is separated from the form l, it will be seen that the design appearing on the wax matrix will be disposed on the outside of the intermediate mold and exposed to view.

Following the formation of the intermediate mold and its solidification or hardening, the said intermediate mold, as shown in Fig. 9, is placed in a molding ring l2 in order to effect the formation of a final pattern mold l3. This is accomplished by pouring a moldable ceramic slip [4 onto the upper surface of the wax matrix and the mold H so that the slip will enter the intaglio design appearing in the wax matrix and will closely conform to the variations of the same. Following the setting or hardening of the slip M, there i produced the solidified pattern mold I3 as shown in Fig. 10. This mold has reversely curved and flat surfaces which bear a faithful reproduction of the design 3 of the primary mold in relief. From the mold l3, production molds (not shown) may be formed in which the final articles are cast.

In view of the foregoing, it will be seen that the present invention provides a mode of procedure which may be conveniently practiced for the purpose of transferring molded designs from a substantially flat surface to a second or succeeding surface of curved or uneven configuration. While I have described what I consider to be the preferred mode of procedure in practicing my present invention, nevertheless it will be appreciated that the same is subject to certain variations or modifications without departing from the essential features of the present invention, as the latter have been set forth in the following claims.

What is claimed is:

l. The method of transferring a relief or intaglio design contained on a substantially flat surface to a curved or irregular surface, comprising distributing a moldable thermo-plastic material in a heated fluid state on a substantially flat design-containing surface of a primary mold, allowing the moldable thermo-plastic material to cool and solidify to form a flexible matrix bearing in one surface thereof the design of the primary mold, removing the matrix from the primary mold following cooling and solidification thereof and placing the same on a shaping form which possesses the cross-sectional configuration of a final design-receiving surface, the designcontaining surface of the matrix being arranged in direct contact with the shaping form, producing an intermediate mold from said shaping form with the matrix inlaid in one surface of said intermediate mold and with the design-containing surface of the matrix exposed to the outside of the intermediate mold, and in molding a final pattern mold from the matrix-containing surface of the intermediate mold.

2. The process of transferring a relief or intaglio design contained on a substantially fiat surface to a curved or irregular surface, the steps which comprise producing a primary mold of ceramic material having a flat surface bearing a design in relief or intaglio, completely immersing said primary mold in a bath composed of a heated liquid, removing the primary mold from said bath and drying the flat design-containing surface thereof while maintaining the heated state of the mold, applying a moldable thermoplastic material in a heated molten state on the design-containing surface of the primary mold, allowing the thermo-plastic material to cool and solidify to form a flexible matrix containing on one surface thereof the design of the primary mold, removing the solidified matrix from the primary mold and placing the same on a shaping form with the design-containing surface of the matrix in direct contact with the surfaces of the shaping form, applying a moldable ceramic material to the shaping form with the matrix aisinta 3 positioned thereon,iwhereby to cause the matrix to become a part of said intermediate mold and to appear in said intermediate mold in the crosssectional form imparted thereto by the shaping form, and in producing a final pattern mold from the matrix-containing, surface of the intermediate mold.

, 3. In a process of transferring a relief or intaglio design contained on a substantially fiat surface to a curved or irregular surface, producing a primary plaster mold bearing on a substantially flat surface thereof a design in relief or intaglio, completely immersing saidprimary mold in a bath composed of a heated liquid for a period of from 5 to 30 minutes, removing the primary mold from said bath and without substantial loss of temperature thereof drying its design-containing surface, applying wax in a molten state on the design-containing surface of said mold, allowing the wax tocool and solidify to form a flexible matrix containing in one surface thereof the design of the primary mold, re-

moving the solidified matrix from the primary mold, and while said matrix is held on said shaping form, molding about the same without loss of the cross-sectional shape of the matrix an intermediate mold in Which the matrix is embedded with the design-containing surface thereof exposed'to the exterior of the intermediate mold, and in producing a final pattern mold from the matrix-containing surface of the intermediate mold. 1

4. In a method of transferring a relief or intaglio design from one cast body to'another, the steps comprising producing a thin flat pliable wax matrix containing in one surface thereof a design in relief or intaglio, placing the matrix on a shaping form to cause the matrix to as-.

termediate mold. WALTER. D. FORD. 

